There are Different Types of Live-a-boards

[capta]

We are encountering a new variety of cruiser down here in the Caribbean. They call themselves "commuter cruisers", spending the winter here and hauling and storing their boats on dry land during the hurricane season and returning north for the summer.
For us, we seem to meet two basic types of liveaboard cruisers sailing the islands, though I know of no labels to differentiate them. Those who still have a home ashore and those who don't; their boat IS their home. Few, if any of them use marinas for anything beyond fueling and the dinghy is their car.

[Bash]

Originally Posted by atoll

why is it that some people allways feel the need to put a lable on every thing!

Agreed. The impulse to label gets a bit strange. How is it that someone feels better about himself because he's labelled someone else a "dock queen?"

Person A is a better liveaboard than Person B because he has more miles on his keel? I thought we were supposed to get over that sort of thinking back in high school.

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by Bash

...................How is it that someone feels better about himself because he's labelled someone else a "dock queen?"..............

"Dock Queen" has a negative conotation? I never seem to be able to keep up, but then I thought the "N" word was Nubian! There are some stellar dock queens at the marina where I am at this time. Few would not envy their accomodations. I don't think the dock queens are feeling bad about the label!

[Kettlewell]

This is the "Cruisers Forum" isn't it? I prefer and use that term, whether or not I happen to be living aboard at the time. Even when I was tied to the dock for long periods I always thought of myself as a "cruiser," though I might use the term "sailor" around people who weren't into boating because they think of cruising as something to do with bars and trolling for a date, and motorcyclists think of you as a Harley rider.

In Florida you don't want to call yourself a "liveaboard" because that is a legal definition that makes you subject to more onerous laws in some places. And, there are lots of people that sneer at liveaboards for various reasons.

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

...........In Florida you don't want to call yourself a "liveaboard" because that is a legal definition that makes you subject to more onerous laws in some places.......

I have continued to refer to myself as a liveaboard in Florida since 1972 and there is no risk in this description. The "liveaboard" legal definition that is used to control the problem with derelict vessels in Florida does not apply to boats that are at marina slips or those that are actively cruising. If you are anchored in Florida waters, with the ability to move to pump out stations and actively involved in navigation, there is no difficulty with your status. I continue to remain at marinas and anchor in a great variety of Florida locaations as a "liveaboard". I certainly agree with Kettlewell's description that "Liveaboards" are illegal in Florida, but this is only in regards to a very limited definition of the term.